


Opposites Attract

by Rain_and_Blood



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Blood and Violence, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Julian Devorak's Route, Multi, OC is not the apprentice, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, it's tweaked, kind of
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2019-06-24
Packaged: 2020-05-18 20:20:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19341913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rain_and_Blood/pseuds/Rain_and_Blood
Summary: Julian comes back to Vesuvia for answers, but it hard to find those when half the city wants you dead. Luckily, Mazelinka knows someone who could help.(A story beginning with Julian meeting Rin [not the apprentice] and ending who-knows-where.)





	Opposites Attract

**Author's Note:**

> Uh, hey. This is my first fanfic. And my first time usin' this site. Forgive me if I make some kind of taboo AO3 mistake. 
> 
> And, uh, thanks for readin'.

The first thing Julian noticed upon waking was how much his head was _pounding_. _Like someone was taking a hammer to his skull_. He groaned and blindly rubbed at his temples, cracking an eye open blearily. He recognized the fuzzy surroundings to be Mazelinka's home before he clenched his eye shut with a grunt. _Just what was in his drink last night?_

The hungover doctor faintly registered the quiet clanging and muttering from behind the curtain as he slowly re-entered the realm of the sober. Mazelinka, the poor dear, she must have had to drag his sorry self from the tavern last night...he couldn't recall walking himself here. With a pained huff (and barely controlled nausea) Julian sat up, bare feet hitting the wood planks. His boots and socks had been removed, leaving him in his white, barely buttoned shirt and trousers. He sighed; surely the poor woman was sick of taking care of him by now. Why she continued to, he had no clue.

After recovering enough that he didn't feel like vomiting whatever he had drunk last night, he stood carefully, deciding it was time to face the day. And Mazelinka's spoon. Behind the curtain, though, was not Mazelinka. It was a stranger, leaning against the wall with crossed arms and a tilted head. Just as Julian comprehended this, the woman he had been looking for appeared from around the corner, spoon in hand, and tutted. "Finally awake, I see." Julian's mouth gaped, then closed, and opened again. "Y-yes. Mazelinka, I'm so--"

"Save it," the older woman sighed, "you're sorry, I know, you'll try to be better next time, yada, yada." Julian felt his cheeks heat up in shame. He looked at the floor and shifted from foot to foot nervously. A quick swat from the wooden spoon snapped him out of it. He yelped embarrassingly and Mazelinka smirked. "'M not mad, Ilya, but you know you have to keep better care of yerself." He nodded sheepishly and snuck a look at the stranger, who was watching the exchange with indifferent eyes.

Mazelinka huffed and turned back to the kitchen, "that's Rin. She's the one that found you passed out last night." If his face wasn't red before, it was now.

"A-ah, Rin. It's a pleasure to meet you--d-despite the circumstances." Julian smiled shakily and extended a hand to the so-far silent stranger. When she grasped his hand loosely in her own, he finally took the time to really look at her. Black hair fell raggedly over her face, partially hiding her steel-blue eyes. A thin grey cloth hid the lower half of her face, sparking no small deal of curiosity. A loose set of tunic and trousers hung on her spry frame and a pair of old boots completed her ragged appearance. It was when she released his hand did he realize he had been staring. He quickly took his hand away and cleared his throat. The blush on his face was here to stay, it seemed.

Mazelinka's voice sounded from behind him, where she was busy throwing ingredients into a pot. "Rin is an old friend of mine. Doesn't talk much, but she's a lovely girl... once ya get to know 'er." Rin huffed quietly behind the bandana, crossing her arms. "Apparently I talk about you enough that she recognized ya and carried yer slippery self here after finding you behind that tavern." Julian sighed deeply, running a hand down his hot face. _Carried back like a lost pet._

"I'm...sorry that had to be your first impression of me, Rin. But I am grateful. I really owe you, now," he admitted, smiling. Rin didn't respond, just looked at him with a surprisingly emotionless gaze before shrugging and pushing herself off the wall. She wasn't all that much shorter than him, he realized as she passed by to the kitchen. She reached at least to his eyes.

A huff from Mazelinka tore him from his pondering, "Rin, you're still wearing that thing? There's no need in front of 'im, he's a doctor after all. I'm sure he's seen worse." Julian straightened immediately, wincing briefly as his head met the ceiling. "A-are you injured? I'm not squeamish, I promise. Maybe I could take a look at it? I do owe you, after all." 

Rin seemed slightly perturbed by the amount of attention she was receiving. Her sharp eyes flicked from Mazelinka, to him, and back again. The shorter woman smirked triumphantly and Julian heard a muffled response from behind Rin's bandanna, to which Mazelinka barked out a laugh. A good-natured swat of the wooden spoon had Rin untying the cloth. Julian smiled at the exchange, as confused as he was. He could already tell how close the two were ( _and part of him rejoiced in the fact that he wasn't the only one at the mercy of that spoon_ ). 

His grin dropped, though, as the bandanna came off. _Irritated red flesh, starting from the corner of her mouth and cutting through her left cheek. Haphazard stitching. Tight scar-tissue._ "How did you get that?! Hold still," he exclaimed as he rushed forward. Rin's eyes widened and she flinched away from him, backing into the counter. He paused at her reaction, taking a breath. He looked into her stormy eyes. They were somehow unreadable, even after her obvious startle.

Mazelinka paused in her cooking and clicked her tongue. She faced Rin with a frown, "I know ya don't like anyone touchin' it, dear. But Ilya is a doctor, and he can help it heal better. Doesn't that sound better than lettin' it tear again?"

Julian's eyebrows shot up. " _Again?_ Just how long has she had this?"

The short woman sighed. "Not sure. Too long, without seeing a doctor. Stitched it herself as far as I know," she scoffed and shook her head.

Rin just stood there, unmoving, though she did avert her gaze to the window uneasily. Julian inhaled slowly before giving his softest smile to her. It was obvious she didn't want anything to do with this, but he refused to let this get any worse. "Rin," he started gently, "I promise I won't do anything without your permission. I won't even touch it, if you don't want me to." He smiled wider when she studied him through her dark locks. "Just let me take a look?" She snuck a glance at Mazelinka, then returned to watching Julian. He could barely see the conflict in her greyish eyes, but it was obvious in the way she clenched the counter with white knuckles. Finally, she exhaled slowly and nodded minutely. 

Julian released a breath he didn't know he was holding. "Terrific. I promise I won't do more than look, not without your consent. Now, could you step over here--into the light, there you go," he guided her to where the morning sunlight shone brightest. She watched him carefully and raised a thin hand to sweep the hair away from her cheek, tilting her head to fully reveal the wound.

It wasn't something you get by accident, Julian had realized that from the beginning. It gave the disturbing impression of a inhuman smile, but only on one side. The only way to get such a clean cut directly through the cheek like that was...well, if someone stuck something akin to a knife into your mouth and--his stomach clenched and he quickly dismissed the thought.

Quietly asking for permission (and receiving a hesitant nod), he lightly guided her head to the side, keeping his touch far from the wounded area. He clicked his tongue at the state of it; red, slightly swollen, uneven stitching. And there, near the middle of the cut, was what he was worried he'd see: early signs of infection. He sighed and stepped away, Rin taking the immediate opportunity to let her hair drop and step back. "Well, it's not good. The stitching is...well, it's awful, no offense, and there's a developing infection. Now, I could clean it, and even re-stitch, but...," Julian smiled gently, "I can't do anything unless you're willing. I highly suggest you let me, but as promised, I won't lay a finger on it without your say-so."

Rin stared at him. Movement caught his eye--her thumbnail swiping back and forth on her index finger. She was nervous, though her face didn't show it.

Mazelinka interrupted their silence as she started chopping up a carrot, "you can trust 'im. You won't find a better doctor for miles." Julian flushed at her praise. "Besides, you know it'll save a lot of time and pain in the future."

The scarred woman took a deep breath, her eyes closing briefly. When they reopened, her sharp gaze was on focused on him. "When?"

This was the first time she'd really spoken, he realized. Her voice was a bit gravely, raspy from disuse. Not unpleasant.

"Let this poor fool get some bread in his gut first," Mazelinka replied. The mention of food had his stomach growling plaintively as if on cue. His cheeks warmed as the short woman snorted. "Then you two can get started--and maybe you'll be done by the time the stew is ready."

**Author's Note:**

> Oh hey, you read 'til the end. Unless you scrolled down here like a madman. Either way, thanks for stoppin' by. 
> 
> 'M not sure how often I'll update this, but I'll try to keep up on it. I kinda like it so far. 
> 
> I'm new to all of this, so forgive me if I screw up somehow. 
> 
>  
> 
> ...ohcrapisthatthistimeishouldbeasleepbye


End file.
